Editing Sengoku period

{{redirect2|Sengoku|Sengoku era|other uses}}
{{expand Japanese|date=March 2023}}
{{Short description|Period of Japanese history from 1467 to 1615}}
{{History of Japan |periods |image=Sengoku period battle.jpg |caption=[[Battle of Kawanakajima]] (1561)}}The {{nihongo|'''Sengoku period'''|戦国時代|Sengoku jidai|{{IPA|ja|seŋ.ɡo.kɯ (d)ʑiꜜ.dai, -ŋo.kɯ-}}<ref>{{cite book|script-title=ja:NHK日本語発音アクセント新辞典|publisher=NHK Publishing|editor=NHK Broadcasting Culture Research Institute|date=24 May 2016|lang=ja}}</ref> {{lit|Warring States period|lk=yes}}}} was the period in [[History of Japan|Japanese history]] in which [[civil wars]] and social upheavals took place almost continuously in the 15th and 16th centuries. The [[Kyōtoku incident]] (1454), [[Ōnin War]] (1467), or {{Interlanguage link|Meiō incident|ja|明応の政変}} (1493) are generally chosen as the period's start date, but there are many competing historiographies for its end date, ranging from 1568, the date of [[Oda Nobunaga#Ise campaign, Omi campaign, and march to Kyoto|Oda Nobunaga's march on Kyoto]], to the suppression of the [[Shimabara Rebellion]] in 1638, deep into what was traditionally considered the [[Edo period]].<ref name="jp191129">{{cite web|url=https://mag.japaaan.com/archives/132811/3|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230131030808/https://mag.japaaan.com/archives/132811/3|script-title=ja:最長で200年説も！戦国時代とはいつからいつまでを指すのか？諸説をまとめました|language=ja|author=Akio Tsunoda|publisher=[[Shōgakukan]]|date=19 November 2020|archive-date=31 January 2023|access-date=31 January 2023}}</ref><ref name="jk061222">{{cite web|url=https://japanknowledge.com/introduction/keyword.html?i=1930|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221206163952/https://japanknowledge.com/introduction/keyword.html?i=1930|script-title=ja:戦国時代|language=ja|publisher=Japan Knowledge|date=|archive-date=6 December 2022|access-date=29 January 2023}}</ref> Regardless of the dates chosen, the Sengoku period overlaps substantially with the [[Muromachi period]] (1336–1573).

[[File:Sengoku period battle.jpg|thumb|180px|[[Takeda Shingen]] deflects [[Uesugi Kenshin]]'s strike at the Fourth [[Battles of Kawanakajima|Battle of Kawanakajima]] during the Sengoku period]]
This period was characterized by the overthrow of a superior power by a subordinate one. The [[Ashikaga shogunate]], the ''[[de facto]]'' central government, declined and the {{nihongo3|feudal lord of Sengoku period|戦国大名|[[daimyo|sengoku daimyo]]}}, a local power, seized wider political influence. The people rebelled against the feudal lords in revolts known as {{nihongo3|[[Ikkō-shū]] uprising|一向一揆|[[Ikkō-ikki]]}}.<ref name="jk061222"/>

The period saw a breakdown in the traditional master-servant relationship between a lord and his vassals, with many instances of vassals rebelling against their lords, internal dynastic conflict over lordships within noble families (in which vassals would take sides), and the installation of figurehead lords by cadet branches of noble families.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://gendai.media/articles/-/83871?page=3|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240307071317/https://gendai.media/articles/-/83871?page=3|script-title=ja:意外と知らない「下剋上」とは一体何か？戦国時代の「主殺し」の実像 3/4|language=ja|publisher=[[Kodansha]]|date=18 June 2021|archive-date=7 March 2024|access-date=7 March 2024}}</ref> The period was also marked by the loosening of samurai culture, with people born into other social strata sometimes making a name for themselves as warriors and thus becoming samurai. In turn, events sometimes allowed common [[samurai]] to rise to the rank of ''sengoku daimyo''; these included [[Hōjō Sōun]] (the first to do so), and [[Uesugi Kenshin]], a {{nihongo3|deputy ''[[Shugo]]''|守護代|[[Shugodai]]}} who attained power by weakening and eventually replacing his lord.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://gendai.media/articles/-/83871?page=4|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240307071419/https://gendai.media/articles/-/83871?page=4|script-title=ja:意外と知らない「下剋上」とは一体何か？戦国時代の「主殺し」の実像 4/4|language=ja|publisher=Kodansha|date=18 June 2021|archive-date=7 March 2024|access-date=7 March 2024}}</ref><ref name="shugosen2">{{cite web|url=https://www.touken-world.jp/history/history-important-word/shugodaimyo-sengokudaimyo/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240317190415/https://www.touken-world.jp/history/history-important-word/shugodaimyo-sengokudaimyo/|script-title=ja:守護大名と戦国武将の違い|language=ja|publisher=The Japanese Sword Museum Nagoya Touken World|date=|archive-date=17 March 2024|access-date=17 March 2024}}</ref> The most spectacular example of a ''sengoku''-era rise is often considered to be that of [[Toyotomi Hideyoshi]], who rose from a peasant background to successively become a samurai, ''sengoku daimyo'', and ''[[Sessho and Kampaku|kampaku]]'' (Imperial Regent).<ref>{{cite web|url=https://dot.asahi.com/articles/-/202017?page=3|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240229075803/https://dot.asahi.com/articles/-/202017?page=3|script-title=ja:豊臣秀吉はなぜ「征夷大将軍」ではなく「関白」になったのか――秀吉をめぐる「三つのなぜ」|language=ja|publisher=[[The Asahi Shimbun]]|date=24 September 2023|archive-date=29 February 2024|access-date=29 February 2024}}</ref>

Modern Japan recognizes [[Oda Nobunaga]], [[Toyotomi Hideyoshi]], and [[Tokugawa Ieyasu]] as {{Nihongo|the three "Great Unifiers"|三英傑／さんえいけつ}} for their restoration of Japan's [[central government]].<ref name="denver">{{cite web|url=https://www.denverartmuseum.org/en/blog/3-unifiers-japan|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240227175241/https://www.denverartmuseum.org/en/blog/3-unifiers-japan|title=The 3 Unifiers of Japan|publisher=[[Denver Art Museum]]|date=12 May 2016|archive-date=27 February 2024|access-date=11 March 2024}}</ref>

== Background ==
During this period, although the [[Emperor of Japan]] was officially the ruler of the state and every lord swore loyalty to him, he was largely a marginalized, ceremonial, and religious figure who delegated power to the ''[[Shogun|shōgun]]'', a noble who was roughly equivalent to a [[Military dictatorship|military dictator]].

From 1346 to 1358, during the [[Nanboku-cho period]], the Ashikaga shogunate gradually expanded the authority of the {{nihongo3||守護|[[Shugo]]}}, the local military and police officials established by the [[Kamakura shogunate]], giving the ''Shugo'' jurisdiction over land disputes between {{nihongo3||御家人|[[gokenin]]}} and allowing the ''Shugo'' to receive half of all taxes from the areas they controlled. The ''Shugo'' shared their newfound wealth with the local samurai, creating a hierarchical relationship between the ''Shugo'' and the samurai, and the first early {{nihongo3|feudal lords|大名|[[daimyo]]}}, called {{nihongo3||守護大名|shugo daimyo}}, appeared.<ref name="shugosen">{{cite web|url=https://www.touken-world.jp/history/history-important-word/shugodaimyo-sengokubusho/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240317181933/https://www.touken-world.jp/history/history-important-word/shugodaimyo-sengokubusho/|script-title=ja:守護大名と戦国武将|language=ja|publisher=The Japanese Sword Museum Nagoya Touken World|date=|archive-date=17 March 2024|access-date=17 March 2024}}</ref>

In 1428, [[Ashikaga Yoshimochi]], the fourth shogun, was ill and the question of his succession arose. [[Ashikaga Yoshikazu]], the 5th shogun, died of illness at the age of 19, so the 6th shogun was chosen from among Yoshimochi's four brothers, and to ensure fairness, a lottery was held. The sixth shogun was [[Ashikaga Yoshinori]]. But he was not educated to be a shogun, and his temperamental and despotic behavior caused resentment. [[Akamatsu Mitsusuke]] assassinated him during the [[:ja:嘉吉の乱|Kakitsu Rebellion]]. This led to instability in the Ashikaga shogunate system. The shogunate gradually lost influence and control over the ''daimyo''.<ref name="kyoto260523">{{cite web|url=https://www2.city.kyoto.lg.jp/somu/rekishi/fm/nenpyou/htmlsheet/toshi14.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230526102155/https://www2.city.kyoto.lg.jp/somu/rekishi/fm/nenpyou/htmlsheet/toshi14.html|script-title=ja:応仁・文明の乱|language=ja|publisher=Kyoto City|date=|archive-date=26 May 2023|access-date=14 March 2024}}</ref><ref name="nagoyaka">{{cite web|url=https://www.touken-world.jp/history/history-important-word/kakitsu-no-ran/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240314154053/https://www.touken-world.jp/history/history-important-word/kakitsu-no-ran/|script-title=ja:嘉吉の乱|language=ja|publisher=The Nagoya Japanese Sword Museum Nagoya Touken World|date=|archive-date=14 March 2024|access-date=14 March 2024}}</ref>

== Beginning of the Sengoku period ==
{{Further|Kyōtoku incident|Ōnin War}}
[[File:Shinnyodō engi, vol.3 (part).jpg|thumb|Painting depicting a battle during the [[Ōnin War]]]]
[[File:Onin-War-1467-1477-The-Battle-of-Onin-by-Utagawa-Yoshitora.png|thumb|19th century [[ukiyo-e]] by [[Utagawa Yoshitora]], depicting a battle of the war]]
The beginning of the Sengoku Period is considered to be the [[Kyōtoku incident]], [[Ōnin War]], or [[:ja:明応の政変|Meiō incident]].<ref name="jk061222"/><ref name="kotomei"/> 

The Kyōtoku Incident was a major war in the [[Kanto region]] that lasted from 1454 to 1482. The war began when [[Ashikaga Shigeuji]] of {{nihongo3||関東公方|[[Kantō kubō]]}}, the office of the Ashikaga shogunate in charge of the Kanto region, killed Uesugi Noritada of {{nihongo3||関東管領|[[:ja:Kantō Kanrei|Kantō kanrei]]}}, Kantō kubō's assistant. The various forces in the Kanto region divided and fought between the ''Kubō'' and ''Kanrei'' sides, with the Ashikaga shogunate supporting the ''Kanrei'' side.<ref name="jk061222"/>

[[Ashikaga Yoshimasa]], the 8th shogun, tried to strengthen the power of the shogun, but his close associates did not follow his instructions, leading to political chaos and increasing social unrest. Since he had no sons, he tried to install his younger brother [[Ashikaga Yoshimi]] as the ninth shogun, but when his wife [[Hino Tomiko]] gave birth to [[Ashikaga Yoshihisa]], a conflict arose among the ''shugo daimyo'' as to whether Yoshimi or Yoshihisa would be the next shogun. The [[Hatakeyama clan|Hatakeyama]] and [[Shiba clan|Shiba]] clans were also divided into two opposing factions over succession within their own clans, and [[Hosokawa Katsumoto]] and [[Yamana Sōzen]], who were father-in-law and son-in-law, were politically at odds with each other.<ref name="kyoto260523"/><ref name="nagoyao">{{cite web|url=https://www.touken-world.jp/tips/7077/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240314154132/https://www.touken-world.jp/tips/7077/|script-title=ja:応仁の乱|language=ja|publisher=The Nagoya Japanese Sword Museum Nagoya Touken World|date=|archive-date=14 March 2024|access-date=14 March 2024}}</ref>

In 1467, these conflicts finally led to the [[Ōnin War]] (1467–1477) between the Eastern Army, led by Hosokawa Katsumoto and including [[Hatakeyama Masanaga]], Shiba Yoshitoshi, and Ashikaga Yoshimi, and the Western Army, led by Yamana Sōzen and including Hatakeyama Yoshinari, Shiba Yoshikado, and Ashikaga Yoshihisa. In 1469, the war spread to the provinces, but in 1473, Hosokawa Katsumoto and Yamana Sōzen, the leaders of both armies, died. In 1477, the war ended when the western lords, including Hatakeyama Yoshinari and [[Ōuchi Masahiro]], withdrew their armies from Kyoto.<ref name="kyoto260523"/><ref name="nagoyao"/> 

The war devastated two-thirds of Kyoto, destroying many aristocratic and samurai residences, [[Shinto shrine]]s, and Buddhist temples, and undermining the authority of the Ashikaga shoguns, greatly reducing their control over the various regions. The war caused disarray which rippled across Japan.<ref name=":0" /> In addition to the military confrontations between separate states, there was also domestic fallout. In contempt of the shogunate, the daimyo who were subjected to remain in Kyoto instead returned to their [[Provinces of Japan|provinces]]. Consequentially, some of these daimyo found that their designated retainers or ''[[shugodai]]'', representatives of their states appointed in a daimyo's absence, rose in power either to seize control of the domain or proclaim independence as a separate domain.<ref name=":1" />

Thus began the Sengoku period, a period of civil war in which the ''daimyo'' of various regions fought to expand their own power.<ref name="kyoto260523"/><ref name="nagoyao"/> ''Daimyo'' who became more powerful as the shogunate's control weakened were called {{nihongo3||戦国大名|sengoku daimyo}}, and they often came from ''shugo daimyo'', ''Shugodai'', and {{nihongo3|local masters|国人|kokujin or kunibito}}. In other words, ''sengoku daimyo'' differed from ''shugo daimyo'' in that ''sengoku daimyo'' was able to rule the region on his own, without being appointed by the shogun.<ref name="shugosen"/>

Historians often consider the Ōnin War, a ten-year conflict wrought by political turmoil, to be the trigger for what would come to be known as the Sengoku period. This [[civil war]] would clearly reveal the Ashikaga shogunate's reduced authority over its shogunal administration, the provincial ''daimyo'' and Japan as a whole; thereby a wave of unbridled conflict would spread across Japan and consume the states in an age of war. Furthermore, weariness of war, socioeconomic unrest and poor treatment by aristocrats provoked the wrath of the peasant class. Farmers, craftsmen, merchants and even villages would organize uprisings (known as ''"ikki")'' against the ruling class. An extraordinary example is the [[Kaga Rebellion]], in which the local ''ikki'' had staged a large-scale revolt with the support of the [[True Pure Land Sect|True Pure Land sect]] (thereby establishing the term ''[[Ikkō-ikki|ikkō ikki]])'' and assumed control of the entire province of [[Kaga ikki|Kaga]].<ref name=":1" /><ref>Thornton, Sybil. "Ikkō Ikki." ''Japan at War'': ''An Encyclopedia'', edited by Louis G. Perez, ABC-CLIO, 2013, pp. 138–140. ''Gale eBooks'', link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX2789100096/GVRL?u=psucic&sid=bookmark-GVRL&xid=b19f37eb. Accessed 21 Mar. 2023.</ref> It is suggested by both scholars and authors that "''these succession disputes still might not have led to war were it not for the shōgun's lack of leadership''."<ref name=":0">Streich, Philip. "Ōnin War (1467–1477)." ''Japan at War'': ''An Encyclopedia'', edited by Louis G. Perez, ABC-CLIO, 2013, pp. 296–297. ''Gale eBooks'', link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX2789100191/GVRL?u=psucic&sid=bookmark-GVRL&xid=56a79408. Accessed 21 Mar. 2023.</ref><ref name=":1">Streich, Philip. "Civil Wars, Sengoku Era (1467–1570)." ''Japan at War'': ''An Encyclopedia'', edited by Louis G. Perez, ABC-CLIO, 2013, pp. 53–55. ''Gale eBooks'', link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX2789100045/GVRL?u=psucic&sid=bookmark-GVRL&xid=3f87bd69. Accessed 21 Mar. 2023.</ref>

== Timeline ==
{{Main article|List of daimyōs from the Sengoku period}}
=== Start and end dates ===
[[File:Oozutu.jpg|thumb|''Ōzutsu'' (Big Gun)|170x170px]]
The [[Kyōtoku incident]] in 1454, [[Ōnin War]] in 1467, or [[:ja:明応の政変|Meiō incident]] in 1493 is usually considered the starting point of the Sengoku period.<ref name="jk061222"/><ref name="kotomei"/> There are several events which could be considered the end of it: Nobunaga's entry to [[Kyoto]] (1568){{sfnm|1a1=Mypaedia|1y=1996}} or abolition of the [[Muromachi shogunate]] (1573){{sfnm|1a1=Hōfu-shi Rekishi Yōgo-shū}} or entry into [[Azuchi Castle]] (1576), Hideyoshi's promulgation of the ''Sōbujirei'' ([[:ja:惣無事令|ja]]) law prohibiting war (1587), the [[siege of Odawara (1590)]], the [[Battle of Sekigahara]] (1600), the establishment of the [[Tokugawa shogunate]] (1603), the [[siege of Osaka]] (1615), or the suppression of the [[Shimabara Rebellion]] (1638).<ref name="jp191129"/> The old, well-known definition is that the Onin War initiated the Sengoku period in 1467; and that it ended in 1568, when Oda Nobunaga entered Kyoto in support of [[Ashikaga Yoshiaki]].<ref name="jp191129"/><ref name="jk061222"/><ref name="kotosen">{{cite web|url=https://kotobank.jp/word/%E6%88%A6%E5%9B%BD%E6%99%82%E4%BB%A3%28%E6%97%A5%E6%9C%AC%29-1555049|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230201015131/https://kotobank.jp/word/%E6%88%A6%E5%9B%BD%E6%99%82%E4%BB%A3%28%E6%97%A5%E6%9C%AC%29-1555049|script-title=ja:戦国時代（日本）|language=ja|publisher=Kotobank|date=|archive-date=1 February 2023|access-date=28 March 2024}}</ref>
[[File:Sekigaharascreen.jpg|thumb|Japanese screen depicting the [[Battle of Sekigahara]] (1600)]]
However, even if 1568 is the end date of the Sengoku period, there are also various theories about the beginning and end dates of the following Azuchi-Momoyama period. The Azuchi-Momoyama period refers to the period when [[Oda Nobunaga]] and [[Toyotomi Hideyoshi]] were in power.<ref name="kotoazuchi"/> They and [[Tokugawa Ieyasu]] are the three unifiers of Japan.<ref name="denver"/> The name "Azuchi-Momoyama" comes from the fact that Nobunaga's castle, [[Azuchi Castle]], was located in [[Azuchi, Shiga]], and [[Fushimi Castle]], where Hideyoshi lived after his retirement, was located in Momoyama. The beginning date could be either when Oda Nobunaga entered Kyoto in 1568 to support Ashikaga Yoshiaki, or when Nobunaga expelled Ashikaga Yoshiaki from Kyoto in 1573 and destroyed the Muromachi Shogunate, or when Nobunaga moved to Azuchi Castle in 1576. It ended either when Toyotomi Hideyoshi died in 1598, or at the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600, or with the opening of the Tokugawa shogunate in 1603.<ref name="kotoazuchi">{{cite web|url=https://kotobank.jp/word/%E5%AE%89%E5%9C%9F%E6%A1%83%E5%B1%B1%E6%99%82%E4%BB%A3-26020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231225100029/https://kotobank.jp/word/%E5%AE%89%E5%9C%9F%E6%A1%83%E5%B1%B1%E6%99%82%E4%BB%A3-26020|script-title=ja:安土桃山時代|language=ja|publisher=Kotobank|date=|archive-date=25 December 2023|access-date=9 March 2024}}</ref><ref name="jk061222" />

[[Kaga ikki]] occurred in 1488, [[Hōjō Sōun]] conquered [[Izu province]] in 1491, and in 1492 [[Hosokawa Masamoto]] banished the 10th shogun [[Ashikaga Yoshitane]] from Kyoto and installed [[Ashikaga Yoshizumi]] as the 11th shogun. Around this time, civil wars began to occur frequently throughout the country, and Buddhist temples in various regions grew as armed forces.<ref name="jk061222"/>

=== Kansai region and Kyoto===
==== Puppetization of the Ashikaga Shogunate by the Hosokawa clan ====
[[File:Hosokawa Masamoto.jpg|thumb|[[Hosokawa Masamoto]]]]
[[Ashikaga Yoshihisa]], who had become the ninth shogun during the Onin War, died at the age of 25, and Ashikaga Yoshitane became the 10th shogun. However, in 1493, Hosokawa Masamoto raised an army while shogun Yoshitane was away in Kyoto and installed the 11th shogun, Ashikaga Yoshizumi, in a de facto coup known as the {{nihongo|[[Meio]] incident|[[:ja:明応の政変|明応の政変]]|}}. Masamoto held the position of {{nihongo3||管領|[[Kanrei]]}}, second only to the shogun in the Ashikaga shogunate, and the equivalent of {{nihongo3||執権|[[Shikken]]}} in the Kamakura shogunate. This made the shogun a puppet of the [[Hosokawa clan]], which served as the ''Kanrei''. In recent years, it has been theorized that this incident marked the beginning of the Sengoku period.<ref name="meio">{{cite web|url=https://www.touken-world.jp/history/history-important-word/meio-no-seihen/|archive-url=|script-title=ja:明応の政変|language=ja|publisher=The Nagoya Japanese Sword Museum Nagoya Touken World|date=|archive-date=|access-date=29 March 2024}}</ref><ref name="kotomei">{{cite web|url=https://kotobank.jp/word/%E6%98%8E%E5%BF%9C%E3%81%AE%E6%94%BF%E5%A4%89-1830908|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328215137/https://kotobank.jp/word/%E6%98%8E%E5%BF%9C%E3%81%AE%E6%94%BF%E5%A4%89-1830908|script-title=ja:明応の政変|language=ja|publisher=Kotobank|date=|archive-date=28 March 2024|access-date=28 March 2024}}</ref>

Hosokawa Masamoto remained a bachelor for the rest of his life and adopted three people as his heirs. Following the advice of his vassals, Masamoto named [[Hosokawa Sumimoto]] as his successor instead of [[:ja:細川澄之|Hosokawa Sumiyuki]], who had been adopted first. As a result, Masamoto was killed by Sumiyuki in 1507. This incident is called {{nihongo3|[[Eishō (Muromachi period)|Eishō]] delirium|[[:ja:永正の錯乱|永正の錯乱]]|Eishō no sakuran}}. This triggered a struggle for the succession of the Hosokawa clan, which was divided into the Hosokawa Sumimoto faction and the [[Hosokawa Takakuni]] faction, and started a war called {{nihongo3|Ryō Hosokawa War|[[:ja:永正の錯乱#両細川の乱|両細川の乱]]|}}, which was won by Hosokawa Takakuni.<ref name="omono">{{cite web|url=https://www.touken-world.jp/tips/11089/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220929125449/https://www.touken-world.jp/tips/11089/|script-title=ja:大物崩れ|language=ja|publisher=The Nagoya Japanese Sword Museum Nagoya Touken World|date=|archive-date=29 September 2022|access-date=29 March 2024}}</ref>

Hosokawa Takakuni installed [[Ashikaga Yoshiharu]] as the 12th shogun. Meanwhile, [[Hosokawa Harumoto]], son of Hosokawa Sumimoto, who had lost the war, collaborated with [[:ja:三好元長|Miyoshi Motonaga]] to defeat Takakuni at the {{nihongo3|Battle of Katsuragawa|[[:ja:桂川の戦い|桂川の戦い]]|}} in 1527 and expel him from Kyoto. The authority of the ''Kanrei'' was thus destroyed, and with almost no support for Hosokawa Takakuni, he was forced to move from place to place. He gained the ''sengoku daimyo'' [[:ja:浦上村宗|Uragami Muramune]] as an ally and fought Hosokawa Harumoto in a war called {{nihongo3||[[:ja:大物崩れ|大物崩れ]]|Daimotsu kuzure}} in 1531, but was defeated.<ref name="omono"/>

Hosokawa Harumoto seized power, but he alienated Miyoshi Motonaga, who was his retainer but still held a strong position of power. Harumoto seduced the [[Ikkō-shū]] into a ''[[Ikkō-ikki]]'' against Motonaga, which resulted in Motonaga's death in 1532.<ref name="omono"/>

==== The rise of the Miyoshi clan ====
[[File:三好長慶.jpg|thumb|[[Miyoshi Nagayoshi]]]]
Miyoshi Motonaga's son, [[Miyoshi Nagayoshi]], fought against Hosokawa Harumoto, but chose to subordinate himself to Harumoto. As a follower of Harumoto, Miyoshi Nagayoshi defeated [[Kizawa Nagamasa]], the most powerful member of the [[Hatakeyama clan]] who served as ''Kanrei'', and in 1547 defeated the 12th shogun, Ashikaga Yoshiharu and [[:ja:細川氏綱|Hosokawa Ujitusna]], son of Hosokawa Takakuni, in the {{nihongo3|Battle of Shari-ji|[[:ja:舎利寺の戦い|舎利寺の戦い]]|}}. This further reduced the power of the Ashikaga Shogunate. Miyoshi Nagayoshi was told by a retainer of the Hosokawa family that [[Miyoshi Masanaga]] had played a dark role in his father's death, and he petitioned his lord Hosokawa Harumoto to overthrow Masanaga, but this petition was not accepted, and, in turn, Nagayoshi was almost eliminated by Harumoto. In response, Miyoshi Nagayoshi attacked and defeated Miyoshi Masanaga, expelled Hosokawa Harumoto, Ashikaga Yoshiharu, the 12th shogun, and his son Ashikaga Yoshiteru from Kyoto, and established control over the Kyoto area in 1549. After that, he fought several times against Ashikaga Yoshiteru, who became the 13th shogun, for control of the Kyoto area. However, one by one, his sons died in war or from disease, and the [[Miyoshi clan]] began to decline rapidly.<ref name="nagayoshi">{{cite web|url=https://www.touken-world.jp/tips/46488/|archive-url=|script-title=ja:三好長慶|language=ja|publisher=The Nagoya Japanese Sword Museum Nagoya Touken World|date=|archive-date=|access-date=29 March 2024}}</ref>

By the time of the 13th shogun, [[Ashikaga Yoshiteru]], the shogun already had few direct fiefs and direct military forces, and his sphere of influence was limited to a few lands around Kyoto, losing both economic and military power. As a result, Ashikaga Yoshiteru was often chased out of Kyoto by the ''sengoku daimyo'' Miyoshi Nagayoshi and his forces, and was finally killed in an attack by the forces of [[Miyoshi Yoshitsugu]] and [[Matsunaga Hisahide]]. Ashikaga Yoshiteru was known as a great swordsman and was a student of [[Tsukahara Bokuden]], who was known as one of the strongest swordsmen.<ref name="kotobateru">{{cite web|url=https://kotobank.jp/word/%E8%B6%B3%E5%88%A9%E7%BE%A9%E8%BC%9D-14302/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240314235845/https://kotobank.jp/word/%E8%B6%B3%E5%88%A9%E7%BE%A9%E8%BC%9D-14302|script-title=ja:足利義輝|language=ja|publisher=Kotobank|date=|archive-date=14 March 2024|access-date=14 March 2024}}</ref> According to [[Yagyū Munenori]], a swordsmanship instructor in the Tokugawa Shogunate, Ashikaga Yoshiteru was one of the five best swordsmen of his time. According to several historical books, including [[Luís Fróis]]' ''Historia de Japam'', he fought hard with ''[[naginata]]'' and ''[[tachi]]'' during a raid, defeating many of his enemies, but eventually ran out of strength and was killed.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://intojapanwaraku.com/rock/culture-rock/69688/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230619125633/https://intojapanwaraku.com/rock/culture-rock/69688/|script-title=ja:足利義輝の壮絶すぎる30年を約15000字で徹底解説。将軍としての使命とは。|language=ja|publisher=[[Shogakukan]]|date=|archive-date=19 June 2023|access-date=14 March 2024}}</ref>

{{nihongo3|The trio|[[:ja:三好三人衆|三好三人衆]]|}} of [[:ja:三好長逸|Miyoshi Nagayasu]], [[:ja:三好宗渭|Miyoshi Soui]], and [[Iwanari Tomomichi]] supported the young head of the clan, Miyoshi Yoshitsugu, in leading the Miyoshi clan. However, after the assassination of the 13th Shogun, the trio fell out with another Miyoshi follower, Matsunaga Hisashige, over the 14th Shogun, [[Ashikaga Yoshihide]], and war broke out. The latter three also came into conflict with Yoshitsugu. The Miyoshi regime virtually collapsed when [[Oda Nobunaga]] entered Kyoto in 1568. Miyoshi Yoshitugu and Matsunaga Hisahide submitted to Nobunaga, but were later killed by Nobunaga's forces. The trio was weakened and the Miyoshi clan declined.<ref name="kotobasan">{{cite web|url=https://kotobank.jp/word/%E4%B8%89%E5%A5%BD%E4%B8%89%E4%BA%BA%E8%A1%86-139812|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230402181459/https://kotobank.jp/word/%E4%B8%89%E5%A5%BD%E4%B8%89%E4%BA%BA%E8%A1%86-139812|script-title=ja:三好三人衆|language=ja|publisher=Kotobank|date=|archive-date=2 April 2023|access-date=28 March 2024}}</ref>

=== Other regions ===
====Chūgoku region (Mōri Motonari)====
[[File:Mori Motonari.jpg|thumb|[[Mōri Motonari]]]]
[[Mōri Motonari]] was a ''sengoku daimyo'' who pacified the [[Chūgoku region]] and is famous for his parable of the "Three Arrows", which explains the importance of clan unity. In his first battle, the [[Battle of Arita-Nakaide]] in 1517, he defeated the overwhelming majority of the Aki-Takeda clan with a small force, which later became known as the "[[Battle of Okehazama]] in the West" as a battle in which a small force defeated a large army. Motonari became head of the [[Mōri clan]] in 1523 at the age of 27. The [[Amago clan|Amago]] and [[Ōuchi clan]]s were sharing power in the Chūgoku region at the time, and he switched the Mōri clan's allegiance from the Amago to the Ōuchi clan in 1525. Motonari destroyed the Takahashi clan by 1535 and ruled [[Aki province]], [[Iwami province]], and [[Bingo province]], and destroyed the Aki-Takeda clan at the [[Siege of Koriyama]] in 1541. Motonaga adopted his sons into the [[Kikkawa clan]] and [[Kobayakawa clan]]s to expand the power of the Mōri clan, and the three clans cooperated with each other. In 1554, Motonaga became independent of the Ōuchi clan, and after inciting the Ōuchi clan to internal divisions through political maneuvering, he defeated [[Sue Harukata]], who had been in control of the Ōuchi clan, at the [[Battle of Itsukushima]] in 1555, and defeated [[Ōuchi Yoshinaga]] in 1557, destroying the Ōuchi clan and pacifying Nagato and Suou provinces.
Motonari destroyed the Amago clan at the [[Siege of Gassantoda Castle]] in 1567, and then pacified [[Izumo province|Izumo]], [[Oki province|Oki]], and [[Hōki Province|Hōki province]]s, thus pacifying the Chūgoku region, and later extended his power to parts of [[Shikoku]]. He died in 1571 at the age of 75.<ref name="kotomori">{{cite web|url=https://kotobank.jp/word/%E6%AF%9B%E5%88%A9%E5%85%83%E5%B0%B1-16902|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240317022808/https://kotobank.jp/word/%E6%AF%9B%E5%88%A9%E5%85%83%E5%B0%B1-16902|script-title=ja:毛利元就|language=ja|publisher=Kotobank|date=|archive-date=17 March 2024|access-date=17 April 2024}}</ref><ref name="toukenmori">{{cite web|url=https://www.touken-world.jp/tips/8100/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240417075126/https://www.touken-world.jp/tips/8100/|script-title=ja:毛利元就の歴史|language=ja|publisher=The Nagoya Japanese Sword Museum Nagoya Touken World|date=|archive-date=17 April 2024|access-date=17 April 2024}}</ref>

====Hokuriku, Kantō, and Chūbu regions (Uesugi Kenshin)====
[[File:Uesugi Kenshin Portrait from Uesugi Shrine.png|thumb|[[Uesugi Kenshin]]]]
In 1546, [[Hōjō Ujiyasu]] defeated [[Uesugi Tomosada (16th century)|Uesugi Tomosada]] at the [[Siege of Kawagoe Castle]], and the [[Later Hōjō clan]] established its power in the [[Kantō region]].<ref name="jk061222"/>

[[Uesugi Kenshin]] (Nagao Kagetora) was a ''sengoku daimyo'' based in [[Echigo Province]] who fought various ''sengoku daimyo'' and increased his power through aggressive invasions. After unifying Echigo in 1551, he invaded the Kantō region several times from 1552 to 1569 and fought against Hōjō Ujiyasu. He also invaded the territory of [[Takeda Shingen]], who ruled [[Kai Province|Kai]] and [[Shinano Province]]s from 1553 to 1573, and fought in the [[Battle of Kawanakajima]] five times between 1553 and 1564. In 1559, Kenshin had an audience with [[Emperor Ōgimachi]] and the 13th Shogun, Ashikaga Yoshiteru. When [[Imagawa Yoshimoto]] was killed by [[Oda Nobunaga]]'s forces at the [[Battle of Okehazama]] in 1560, the [[:ja:甲相駿三国同盟|Alliance Kai-Sagami-Suruga]] formed in 1554 between Takeda Shingen in Kai, Hojo Ujiyasu in [[Sagami Province|Sagami]], and Imagawa Yoshimoto in [[Suruga Province|Suruga]] was broken. Kenshin used this as an opportunity to seize Hojo Ujiyasu's territories one by one, and cornered the Later Hōjō clan at the [[Siege of Odawara (1561)|Siege of Odawara]] in 1561, but was unable to defeat them. On his return from the Siege of Odawara, he performed a ceremony at the [[Tsurugaoka Hachimangū]] and assumed the position of ''[[Kanrei|kantō kanrei]]''. Kenshin made peace with Hōjō Ujiyasu, who ceded part of his territory to him in 1569, and made Takeda Shingen a common enemy of Kenshin and Ujiyasu, but Shingen died of illness in 1573. After Takeda Shingen's death, he fell out with Oda Nobunaga and destroyed the Noto Hatakeyama clan, which was close to Nobunaga, at the [[Siege of Nanao]] in 1577, pacifying [[Noto Province]]. He then defeated Oda Nobunaga's forces at the [[Battle of Tedorigawa]]. However, he died of a cerebral hemorrhage in 1578 at the young age of 49.<ref name="kotoken">{{cite web|url=https://kotobank.jp/word/%E4%B8%8A%E6%9D%89%E8%AC%99%E4%BF%A1-33780|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231225094255/https://kotobank.jp/word/%E4%B8%8A%E6%9D%89%E8%AC%99%E4%BF%A1-33780|script-title=ja:上杉謙信|language=ja|publisher=Kotobank|date=|archive-date=25 December 2023|access-date=17 April 2024}}</ref><ref name="toukenken">{{cite web|url=https://www.touken-world.jp/tips/33844/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240417042219/https://www.touken-world.jp/tips/33844/|script-title=ja:上杉謙信の歴史|language=ja|publisher=The Nagoya Japanese Sword Museum Nagoya Touken World|date=|archive-date=17 April 2024|access-date=17 April 2024}}</ref>

=== Social changes with the advent of matchlock guns ===
[[File:Gunsmith Storefront in Sakai Osaka by Akisato Rito 1796.jpg|thumb|Gunsmith storefront, [[Sakai, Osaka]]]]
When the Portuguese brought the [[matchlock]] gun to Japan in 1543, it was mass-produced in Japan, and a gun called the ''[[Tanegashima (gun)|tanegashima]]'' began to be used in wars. With the introduction of guns, a standing army of {{nihongo3|foot soldier|足軽|[[ashigaru]]}} became essential to victory in war, making it impossible for small local lords to remain independent, and lands were consolidated under ''sengoku daimyo'' with vast territories, and battles between ''sengoku daimyo'' became more intense.<ref name="kotosen"/>
[[File:La bataille de Nagashino (Musée Guimet MNAAG, Paris) (39839578035).jpg|thumb|The [[Battle of Nagashino]] in 1575. Key to Oda's success during the battle was the deployment of 10,000 [[Ashigaru]] arquebusiers.]]
During this period, the organized use of large numbers of ''tanegashima'' (guns) was essential to winning the war. In order for the ''daimyo'' to win the war, they had to secure a large number of gunsmiths and arms dealers, import large quantities of [[lead]], the raw material for bullets, and [[nitre]], the raw material for gunpowder, conduct routine marksmanship training, and secure large quantities of materials for building war positions. It was Oda Nobunaga who did this most successfully.<ref name="proda2">{{cite web|url=https://president.jp/articles/-/58753?page=2|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220627010948/https://president.jp/articles/-/58753?page=2|script-title=ja:なぜ武田､北条､今川はダメだったのか…小さな戦国大名･織田信長を｢天下人｣に導いた3つの要素 2/5|language=ja|publisher=President Online|date=26 June 2022|archive-date=27 June 2022|access-date=28 March 2024}}</ref> He built Azuchi Castle at a strategic distribution point, brought several gunsmithing centers under his control, and established friendly relations with the Portuguese and merchants in [[Sakai]], which had become an international port. He examined the rice yields of the lands under his control and did not allow his retainers to take private ownership of the lands, leaving the management of the lands to his retainers. This made it possible to efficiently change territories according to the performance of the vassals, thus eliminating land disputes. In addition, he made it possible to form a standing army by assigning military service to each region according to rice production. He encouraged the economic activities of the common people. In this way, he rapidly increased his power.<ref name="proda3">{{cite web|url=https://president.jp/articles/-/58753?page=3|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220627011048/https://president.jp/articles/-/58753?page=3|script-title=ja:なぜ武田､北条､今川はダメだったのか…小さな戦国大名･織田信長を｢天下人｣に導いた3つの要素 3/5|language=ja|publisher=President Online|date=26 June 2022|archive-date=27 June 2022|access-date=28 March 2024}}</ref><ref name="proda4">{{cite web|url=https://president.jp/articles/-/58753?page=4|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220714191335/https://president.jp/articles/-/58753?page=4|script-title=ja:なぜ武田､北条､今川はダメだったのか…小さな戦国大名･織田信長を｢天下人｣に導いた3つの要素 4/5|language=ja|publisher=President Online|date=26 June 2022|archive-date=14 July 2022|access-date=28 March 2024}}</ref><ref name="proda5">{{cite web|url=https://president.jp/articles/-/58753?page=5|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220627011453/https://president.jp/articles/-/58753?page=5|script-title=ja:なぜ武田､北条､今川はダメだったのか…小さな戦国大名･織田信長を｢天下人｣に導いた3つの要素 5/5|language=ja|publisher=President Online|date=26 June 2022|archive-date=27 June 2022|access-date=28 March 2024}}</ref>

===Oda Nobunaga===
{{main article|Oda Nobunaga|Azuchi–Momoyama period}}
[[File:Azuchimomoyama-japan.png|thumb|right|200px|Japan in the late 16th century]]
[[File:The Three Unifiers of Japan.jpg|thumb|The three unifiers of Japan: from left to right: Oda Nobunaga, Toyotomi Hideyoshi and Tokugawa Ieyasu]]
In and around the [[Kinai]], the most politically important region in Japan, Oda Nobunaga allied with [[Tokugawa Ieyasu]] to increase his power. Nobunaga defeated [[Imagawa Yoshimoto]] at the [[Battle of Okehazama]] in 1560 and moved to Kyoto in 1568 to support the 15th shogun, [[Ashikaga Yoshiaki]]. Nobunaga defeated [[Miyoshi Yoshitsugu]] in 1569, laid [[Siege of Mount Hiei|siege to Mount Hiei]] in 1571, defeated [[Asakura Yoshikage]] at the [[Siege of Ichijōdani Castle]] in 1573, defeated [[Asai Nagamasa]] at the [[Siege of Odani Castle]] in the same year, and expelled Ashikaga Yoshiaki from Kyoto in 1573, thus destroying the Ashikaga shogunate. He overpowered the [[Sieges of Nagashima|Nagashima ikko ikki]] in 1574, defeated [[Takeda Katsuyori]] at the [[Battle of Nagashino]] in 1575, and defeated [[Ishiyama Hongan-ji]] in the [[Ishiyama Hongan-ji War]] in 1580. However, he was betrayed by his vassal [[Akechi Mitsuhide]], who drove him to suicide in the [[Honnō-ji Incident]] of 1582.<ref name="jk061222"/><ref name="jkoda">{{cite web|url=https://japanknowledge.com/introduction/keyword.html?i=31|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240314100237/https://japanknowledge.com/introduction/keyword.html?i=31|script-title=ja:織田信長|language=ja|publisher=Japan Knowledge|date=|archive-date=14 March 2024|access-date=23 March 2024}}</ref>

At the same time, the [[Mōri clan]] overthrew the [[Ouchi clan]] in the [[Chūgoku region]], and the [[Shimazu clan|Shimazu]] and [[Otomo clan]]s became major powers in [[Kyushu]]. In this way, regional unification was promoted.<ref name="jk061222"/>

=== Toyotomi (Hashiba) Hideyoshi ===
{{main|Toyotomi Hideyoshi|Azuchi–Momoyama period}}
Though a peasant by birth, [[Toyotomi Hideyoshi]] had risen through the ranks of {{nihongo3|foot soldier|足軽|[[ashigaru]]}}, samurai, and ''sengoku daimyo'' under Nobunaga to become the most capable general of them all. When he learned that his lord Nobunaga had been effectively killed by Akechi Mitsuhide, he immediately made peace with the Mōri clan, who were in the midst of a battle, and turned his army back faster than anyone could have predicted, defeating Akechi Mitsuhide at the [[Battle of Yamazaki]]. Hideyoshi avenged his lord's death only 11 days after Nobunaga's death. The men who had been Nobunaga's chief vassals discussed future policy at the [[:ja:清須会議|Kiyosu Conference]], and Hideyoshi began his path to becoming Nobunaga's successor. In 1582, Hideyoshi defeated [[Shibata Katsuie]] and [[Oda Nobutaka]], who had been enemies over Nobunaga's succession, at the [[Battle of Shizugatake]], and in 1583 he began construction of [[Osaka Castle]]. In 1584, he fought bitterly against the allied forces of Tokugawa Ieyasu and [[Oda Nobuo]] at the [[Battle of Komaki and Nagakute]], but was able to make a truce with Nobuo by making peace with him. In 1585, he defeated [[Chōsokabe Motochika]] in an [[Invasion of Shikoku (1585)|Invasion of Shikoku]] and pacified [[Shikoku]]. In 1586, he became {{nihongo3|Imperial Regent|関白|[[Kampaku]]}} and {{nihongo3|Chancellor of the Realm|太政大臣|[[Daijō-daijin]]}} for the first time in history, although he was not a native-born aristocrat. In 1586, he also succeeded in getting Ieyasu to swear allegiance to him. In 1587, he defeated the [[Shimazu clan]] in a [[Kyūshū campaign]] and pacified [[Kyūshū]]. In 1590, he defeated the Later Hōjō clan in the [[Siege of Odawara (1590)|Siege of Odawara]] and pacified the Kantō region. In the same year, he forced the clans of the [[Tōhoku region]] to swear allegiance to him and finally achieved the unification of Japan.<ref name="jktoyo">{{cite web|url=https://japanknowledge.com/introduction/keyword.html?i=65|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240314105037/https://japanknowledge.com/introduction/keyword.html?i=65|script-title=ja:豊臣秀吉|language=ja|publisher=Japan Knowledge|date=|archive-date=14 March 2024|access-date=28 March 2024}}</ref><ref name="kototoyooda">{{cite web|url=https://kotobank.jp/word/%E8%B1%8A%E8%87%A3%E7%A7%80%E5%90%89-19047|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240316063517/https://kotobank.jp/word/%E8%B1%8A%E8%87%A3%E7%A7%80%E5%90%89-19047|script-title=ja:豊臣秀吉|language=ja|publisher=Kotobank|date=|archive-date=16 March 2024|access-date=28 March 2024}}</ref>

==== Tōhoku region (Date Masamune) ====
[[File:Date Masamune02.jpg|thumb|[[Date Masamune]]]]
[[Date Masamune]] was a one-eyed warlord, a famous ''sengoku daimyo'' who is often said to have had the potential to unite the country if only he had been born 20 years earlier.<ref name="toukendate">{{cite web|url=https://www.touken-world.jp/tips/29927/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240417055158/https://www.touken-world.jp/tips/29927/|script-title=ja:伊達政宗の歴史|language=ja|publisher=The Nagoya Japanese Sword Museum Nagoya Touken World|date=|archive-date=17 April 2024|access-date=17 April 2024}}</ref><ref name="asahidate">{{cite web|url=https://www.bs-asahi.co.jp/shiro_kenbunroku/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240417055320/https://www.bs-asahi.co.jp/shiro_kenbunroku/lineup/prg_031/|script-title=ja:伊達政宗|language=ja|publisher=[[TV Asahi]]|date=|archive-date=17 April 2024|access-date=17 April 2024}}</ref> He became the head of the [[Date clan]] in 1584, two years after the death of Oda Nobunaga, destroyed the [[:ja:Nihonmatsu clan|Nihonmatsu clan]] and other clans, and then in 1589, at the [[Battle of Suriagehara]], defeated the [[Ashina clan (Japan)|Ashina clan]] to conquer the [[Aizu province]], and continued to expand his territory to conquer most of the [[Tōhoku region]]. On the other hand, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, who had only the Kantō and Tōhoku regions left to unify Japan, enacted a law called the {{nihongo3||惣無事令|Sōbujirei}} in 1587, which prohibited ''sengoku daimyo'' from waging war against each other, and Masamune's conquest of the Tōhoku region was a serious violation of this law. After destroying the Later Hōjō clan at the Siege of Odawara, Hideyoshi wanted to destroy the Date clan and other ''sengoku daimyo'' in the Tōhoku region who were reluctant to show their deference. Hideyoshi had his subordinate [[Maeda Toshiie]] question Masamune, who had arrived late to give the order to participate in the Siege of Odawara, but after hearing Masamune's bold attitude, he decided to meet with Masamune. Masamune showed his reverence by appearing before Hideyoshi in a pure white death robe, ready to be executed. Hideyoshi placed his staff on Masamune's neck and said, "If you had come a little later, you would have been beheaded," and Masamune pledged his reverence to Hideyoshi. He did not lose his life, only some of his territory was confiscated. He was later interrogated by Hideyoshi on suspicion of inciting a peasant uprising and participating in the rebellion of [[Toyotomi Hidetsugu]], but he defended himself with his usual courage and dignity and was not punished.<ref name="toukendate"/><ref name="kotodate">{{cite web|url=https://kotobank.jp/word/%E4%BC%8A%E9%81%94%E6%94%BF%E5%AE%97-93740|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230611111757/https://kotobank.jp/word/%E4%BC%8A%E9%81%94%E6%94%BF%E5%AE%97-93740|script-title=ja:伊達政宗|language=ja|publisher=Kotobank|date=|archive-date=11 June 2023|access-date=17 April 2024}}</ref>

He was on the side of Tokugawa Ieyasu at the [[Battle of Sekigahara]], and as the first lord of the [[Sendai domain]] during the [[Edo period]], he developed [[Sendai]] and laid the foundations of the city as the center of the present-day Tōhoku region. In 1613, he sent [[Hasekura Tsunenaga]] as an ambassador to Europe, where he was granted an audience with the [[Pope Paul V]].<ref name="toukendate"/><ref name="kotodate"/>

=== Events ===
{|class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Time
! scope="col" | Event
|-
! scope="row" | 1454
|Beginning of [[Kyōtoku incident]]
|-
! scope="row" | 1467
|Beginning of [[Ōnin War]]
|-
! scope="row" | 1477
|End of Ōnin War. The effective independence of the [[Iga ikki|Iga ''ikki'']] is noted
|-
! scope="row" | 1482
|End of Kyōtoku incident.
|-
!1485
|The Yamashiro uprising results in the formation of the [[Yamashiro ikki|Yamashiro ''ikki'']]
|-
!1487
|Battle of Magari: Rokkaku Takayori, assisted by ninjas from the Iga and [[Kōka ikki|Kōka ''ikki''s]], defeats [[Ashikaga Yoshihisa]]
|-
! scope="row" | 1488
|The [[Kaga Rebellion]] establishes the [[Kaga ikki|Kaga ''ikki'']]
|-
! rowspan="3" scope="row" | 1493
|[[Hosokawa Masamoto]] succeeds in the Coup of Meio (Meio incident)
|-
|[[Hōjō Sōun]] seizes [[Izu Province]]
|-
|The Ashikaga shogunate destroys the Yamashiro ''ikki''
|-
! scope="row" | 1507
|  Beginning of the Ryo Hosokawa War (the succession dispute in the Hosokawa family)
|-
! scope="row" | 1520
| [[Hosokawa Takakuni]] defeats [[Hosokawa Sumimoto]]
|-
!1523
|[[Ming Empire|Ming China]] suspends all diplomatic and trade relations with [[Japan]] due to the conflict
|-
! scope="row" | 1531
| [[Hosokawa Harumoto]] defeats Hosokawa Takakuni
|-
! Scope="row" | 1535
| [[Battle of Idano]] The forces of the [[Matsudaira clan|Matsudaira]] defeat the rebel Masatoyo
|-
! scope="row" | 1543
| The [[Portuguese Empire|Portuguese]] lands on [[Tanegashima]], becoming the first Europeans to arrive in Japan, and introduce the [[arquebus]] into Japanese warfare
|-
! scope="row" | 1546
|[[Siege of Kawagoe Castle]]: [[Hojo Ujiyasu]] defeats the [[Uesugi clan]] and becomes ruler of the [[Kanto Region]]
|-
! rowspan="2" scope="row" | 1549
| [[Miyoshi Nagayoshi]] betrays Hosokawa Harumoto
|-
|Japan officially ends its recognition of China's [[regional hegemony]] and cancels any further [[Tributary system of China|tribute missions]]
|-
! scope="row" | 1551
| [[Tainei-ji incident]]: [[Sue Harukata]] betrays [[Ōuchi Yoshitaka]], taking control of western Honshu
|-
! scope="row"  | 1554
|  The tripartite pact among [[Takeda Shingen|Takeda]], [[Hōjō Ujiyasu|Hōjō]] and [[Imagawa Yoshimoto|Imagawa]] is signed
|-
! scope="row"  | 1555
| [[Battle of Itsukushima]]: [[Mōri Motonari]] defeats Sue Harukata and goes on to supplant the Ōuchi as the foremost ''daimyo'' of western Honshu
|-
! scope="row" | 1560
| [[Battle of Okehazama]]: The outnumbered [[Oda Nobunaga]] defeats and kills [[Imagawa Yoshimoto]] in a surprise attack
|-
! rowspan="2" scope="row" | 1561
| [[Battle of Kawanakajima|Fourth Battle of Kawanakajima]]: The legendary battle between [[Takeda Shingen]] and [[Uesugi Kenshin]]
|-
|Portuguese vessels bombard Moji at the request of [[Otomo Sorin]], who fails to take it [[Siege of Moji|in a siege]].
|-
! scope="row"  | 1562
| [[Omura Sumitada]] converted to Christianity, becoming the first Japanese lord to do so.
|-
! scope="row"  | 1565
| Portuguese and Japanese vessels belonging to the Matsura clan clash at the [[Battle of Fukuda Bay]].
|-
! scope="row" | 1568
| [[Oda Nobunaga]] marches toward [[Kyoto]] forcing [[Matsunaga Hisahide]] to relinquish control of the city
|-
! scope="row" | 1570
|[[Battle of Anegawa]] and the beginning of the [[Ishiyama Hongan-ji War]]
|-
!1571
|[[Nagasaki]] is established as a trade port for Portuguese merchants, with authorization of [[Daimyō|daimyo]] [[Ōmura Sumitada]]
|-
! scope="row" | 1573
| The end of the [[Ashikaga shogunate]]
|-
!1574
|The [[Rokkaku clan]] and [[Kōka ikki|Kōka ''ikki'']] surrender to Oda Nobunaga
|-
! scope="row" | 1575
| [[Battle of Nagashino]]: [[Oda Nobunaga]] and [[Tokugawa Ieyasu]] decisively defeat the [[Takeda clan]] cavalry with innovative arquebus tactics
|-
! scope="row" | 1577
| [[Battle of Tedorigawa]]: The epic battle between [[Uesugi Kenshin]] against [[Oda Nobunaga]]
|-
! scope="row" | 1580
|End of the [[Ishiyama Hongan-ji War]]. Oda Nobunaga unifies central Japan under his rule
|-
!1581
|The [[Tenshō Iga War]] ends with the destruction of the [[Iga ikki|Iga ''ikki'']].
|-
! scope="row" | 1582
|[[Akechi Mitsuhide]] assassinates Oda Nobunaga in the [[Honnō-ji Incident]]; [[Hashiba Hideyoshi]] defeats Akechi at the [[Battle of Yamazaki]]
|-
! scope="row" | 1583
|[[Chosokabe Motochika]] extends his power to all of [[Shikoku island]]
|-
! scope="row" | 1584
|[[Shimazu Yoshihisa]] succeeds in controlling the entire [[Kyushu region]]
|-
! rowspan="2" scope="row"| 1585
| [[Invasion of Shikoku (1585)]]:Hashiba Hideyoshi conquest of Shikoku
|-
|Hashiba Hideyoshi is granted the title of ''[[Sesshō and Kampaku|Kampaku]]'', establishing his predominant authority; he is granted the surname ''Toyotomi'' a year after.
|-
! rowspan="2" scope="row" | 1587
| [[Kyūshū campaign]]: Toyotomi Hideyoshi defeats the [[Shimazu clan]]
|-
| [[Toyotomi Hideyoshi]] announces the first anti-Christian sentiment
|-
! rowspan="2" scope="row" | 1590
| [[Siege of Odawara (1590)|Siege of Odawara]]: Toyotomi Hideyoshi defeats the [[Late Hōjō clan|Hōjō clan]]
|-
| Toyotomi Hideyoshi achieves the unification of the entire country under the loyalty of the clans of Mutsu Province.
|-
! scope="row" | 1591
| [[Kunohe rebellion]]: Toyotomi Hideyoshi and Tokugawa Ieyasu defeat the forces of [[Kunohe Masazane]], unifying Japan under the rule of Toyotomi Hideyoshi
|-
! scope="row" | 1592–98
|[[Japanese invasions of Korea (1592–1598)|Japanese invasions of Korea]]
|-
! scope="row" | 1598
|Toyotomi Hideyoshi dies
|-
! scope="row" | 1600
| [[Battle of Sekigahara]]: The Eastern Army under [[Tokugawa Ieyasu]] defeats the Western Army of Toyotomi loyalists
|-
! scope="row" | 1603
| [[Rokugō Rebellion]]: Satake clan under [[Satake Yoshinobu]] takes full control of Kubota Domain
|-
! scope="row" | 1603
|[[Tokugawa Ieyasu]] unifies all of Japan under his rule and establishes the [[Tokugawa shogunate]]
|-
! scope="row" | 1609
|[[Invasion of Ryukyu]]: The Ryukyu Kingdom becomes a vassal state under the [[Satsuma Domain]] of Japan
|-
!1614
|[[Catholicism]] is officially banned and all missionaries are ordered to leave the country for two centuries
|-
! scope="row" | 1615
|[[Siege of Osaka]]: The last of the Toyotomi opposition to the Tokugawa shogunate is stamped out
|}

==''Gekokujō''==
[[File:Map_Japan_Genki1-en.svg|thumb|right|upright=1.5|Japan in 1570]]
The upheaval resulted in the further weakening of central authority, and throughout Japan, regional lords, called ''[[daimyō]]s'', rose to fill the vacuum. In the course of this power shift, well-established [[Japanese clans|clans]] such as the [[Takeda family|Takeda]] and the [[Imagawa family|Imagawa]], who had ruled under the authority of both the Kamakura and Muromachi ''bakufu'', were able to expand their spheres of influence. There were many, however, whose positions eroded and were eventually usurped by more capable underlings. This phenomenon of social meritocracy, in which capable subordinates rejected the status quo and forcefully overthrew an emancipated aristocracy, became known as {{Nihongo||下克上|[[gekokujō]]}}, which means "low conquers high".<ref name="enc">{{cite encyclopedia |year=2012 |title=Sengoku period |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of Japan |publisher=Shogakukan |location=Tokyo |url=http://rekishi.jkn21.com/ |access-date=2012-08-15 |oclc=56431036 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070825113418/http://rekishi.jkn21.com/ |archive-date=2007-08-25 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

One of the earliest instances of this was [[Hōjō Sōun]], who rose from relatively humble origins and eventually seized power in [[Izu Province]] in 1493. Building on the accomplishments of Sōun, the [[Later Hōjō clan|Hōjō clan]] remained a major power in the [[Kantō region]] until its subjugation by [[Toyotomi Hideyoshi]] late in the Sengoku period. Other notable examples include the supplanting of the [[Hosokawa clan]] by the [[Miyoshi clan|Miyoshi]], the [[Toki clan|Toki]] by the [[Saitō clan|Saitō]], and the [[Shiba clan]] by the [[Oda clan]], which was in turn replaced by its underling, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, a son of a peasant with no family name.{{Citation needed|date=June 2022}}

Well-organized religious groups also gained political power at this time by uniting farmers in resistance and rebellion against the rule of the ''daimyōs''. The monks of the [[Buddhism|Buddhist]] [[Jōdo Shinshū|True Pure Land]] sect formed numerous ''[[Ikkō-ikki]]'', the most successful of which, in [[Kaga Province]], remained independent for nearly 100 years.{{Citation needed|date=June 2022}}

==See also==
* [[List of Japanese battles]]
* [[Horses in East Asian warfare]]
* [[Warring States period]] – a similar period in Chinese history 
* [[Crisis of the Third Century]] – a similar period in Roman history
* [[Kabukimono]]

==Notes==
{{Reflist}}

==References==
{{refbegin}}
* {{cite encyclopedia
 |encyclopedia = Hōfu-shi Rekishi Yōgo-shū
 |title        = Sengoku Jidai
 |language     = ja
 |publisher    = Hōfu Web Rekishi-kan
 |url          = https://kotobank.jp/word/%E6%88%A6%E5%9B%BD%E6%99%82%E4%BB%A3-549884#E9.98.B2.E5.BA.9C.E5.B8.82.E6.AD.B4.E5.8F.B2.E7.94.A8.E8.AA.9E.E9.9B.86
 |ref          = {{SfnRef|Hōfu-shi Rekishi Yōgo-shū}}
}}
*{{Cite book
 |last=Hane |first=Mikiso
 |title=Modern Japan: a historical survey
 |publisher=[[Westview Press]]
 |year=1992
 |isbn=978-0-8133-1368-9
 |edition=2nd
 |location=Boulder, Colo.
}}
*{{Cite book
 |last=Chaplin |first=Danny
 |title=Sengoku Jidai. Nobunaga, Hideyoshi, and Ieyasu: Three Unifiers of Japan
 |publisher=[[CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform]]
 |year=2018
 |isbn=978-1-9834-5020-4
}}
*{{Cite journal
 |last=Hall |first=John Whitney |author-link=John Whitney Hall
 |date=May 1961
 |title=Foundations of the Modern Japanese Daimyo
 |journal=[[The Journal of Asian Studies]]
 |publisher=[[Association for Asian Studies]]
 |volume=20 |issue=3 |pages=317–329
 |doi=10.2307/2050818 |issn=0021-9118
 |jstor=2050818 |s2cid=56154455
}}
* {{Cite book
 |last=Jansen |first=Marius B. |author-link=Marius B. Jansen
 |url=https://www.bakumatsu.ru/lib/Making_of_modern_Japan_Marius_B._Jansen.pdf
 |title=The making of modern Japan
 |publisher=[[Harvard University Press]]
 |year=2002
 |isbn=978-0-674-00991-2
 |location=Cambridge, Mass.
 |oclc=44090600
}}
*{{Cite book
 |last=Lorimer |first=Michael
 |title=Sengokujidai: autonomy, division and unity in later medieval Japan
 |publisher=Olympia
 |year=2008
 |isbn=978-1-905513-45-1
 |location=London
}}
* {{cite encyclopedia
 |encyclopedia = Mypaedia
 |title        = Sengoku Jidai
 |language     = ja
 |year         = 1996
 |publisher    = [[Hitachi]]
 |url          = https://kotobank.jp/word/戦国時代-549884#E7.99.BE.E7.A7.91.E4.BA.8B.E5.85.B8.E3.83.9E.E3.82.A4.E3.83.9A.E3.83.87.E3.82.A3.E3.82.A2
 |ref          = {{SfnRef|Mypaedia|1996}}
}}
{{refend}}

==External links==
* [[doi:10.1080/03050629.2023.2149514|Warring-States Japan Battle Dataset]] –&nbsp;2,889 battles occurring within Japan during the Sengoku period
* [https://www.worldhistory.org/Sengoku_Period/ Sengoku Period] – ''[[World History Encyclopedia]]''
* [http://www.samurai-archives.com Samurai Archives Japanese History page]
* {{In lang|ja|cap=yes}} [http://www.sengoku-expo.net/E/index.html Sengoku Expo: Japanese Design, Culture in the Age of Civil Wars] held in Gifu Prefecture, 2000–2001
* {{In lang|ja|cap=yes}} [http://www2.harimaya.com/sengoku/bk_1ran.html List of the Sengoku Daimyos]

{{S-start}}
{{S-bef|before = ''[[Nanboku-chō period]]'' (1334–1392)<br>(of [[Muromachi Period]])}}
{{S-ttl|title  = [[History of Japan]]<br>Sengoku period|years  = '''1467–1573<br>(of [[Muromachi Period]])'''|with   = 
| before = ''[[Nanboku-chō period]]''}}
{{S-aft|after  = ''[[Azuchi–Momoyama period]]''<br>1573–1603}}
{{S-end}}
{{People of the Sengoku period|state=autocollapse}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Sengoku period| ]]
[[Category:1460s in Japan|*]]
[[Category:1470s in Japan|*]]
[[Category:1480s in Japan|*]]
[[Category:1490s in Japan|*]]
[[Category:16th century in Japan|*]]
[[Category:1460s establishments in Japan]]
[[Category:1467 establishments in Asia]]
[[Category:1573 disestablishments in Japan]]
[[Category:Civil wars in Japan]]
[[Category:Muromachi period]]
[[Category:Wars of succession involving the states and peoples of Asia]]